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Schools: basic information

Children and young people who stammer can succeed in education, with the right support which is not difficult to provide.

Pupils who stammer have the same range of abilities and personalities as those who do not and they are just as likely to be gifted and/or talented.

Stammering need not hold back a pupil’s achievement as long as support to manage the stammer is provided by a partnership between the school, the therapist and the parents, working with the pupil to maintain self- esteem and confidence.

Parents do not cause stammering but they have an important role in supporting their child’s speech and establishing good communication with the school so that any concerns can be dealt with. Information for parents on stammering and their role in working with schools is available at www.stammering.org/expertparent

Education staff must know how to identify stammering and respond to the pupil’s individual needs. Information for staff training is available at www.stammeringineducation.net

The therapist’s advice for staff on support strategies for the pupil in school can be also be supplemented by these BSA training resources for schools as they supply detailed information for managing key situations for pupils who stammer, such as classroom tasks of reading aloud and oral tests for GCSE subjects.

It is reassuring that a stammer is not a barrier to learning as long as the right support is provided in the school and the home - with that support pupils who stammer are just as likely to achieve as those who do not.